Townes, Hank, and a New Year

Although many people consider New Year's Eve to be a festive time, I tend to spend the day in a state of reflection. Two of my greatest heroes, Hank Williams and Townes Van Zandt, left this world on New Year's Day; and on New Year's Eve I often find myself considering the ephemeral nature of life. Perhaps it is because the land beneath our house was once Van Zandt land and that Townes' grave is but a short drive from here.

For me personally, this was the best year I have had in more than a decade. After almost thirty years of struggling to become a published author, my dream has finally come true. Every day is a day of thanksgiving. Every day is a day of gratitude, and this New Year's Eve I am giving thanks for all that I have been given. I am giving thanks for all of the people who have helped me along the way. I am giving thanks for the friends and relatives who were there for me and for the artists I have never met but who have made an impact on me as a human being and a writer.

Sometime during the course of this day, I will play the records of Hank Williams and Townes Van Zandt, poets with an accent and vernacular that sound like home, poets whose songs never cease to touch and inspire me. Here is a beautiful, almost hypnotic video of Fort Worth artist Townes Van Zandt's "I'll Be Here in the Morning." The video was recorded from the window of a train.